2019 season to begin weekend of April 13-14; schedule details announced

The 2019 NWSL Championship will take place on October 26

BY Jacqueline Purdy November 28, 2018
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The 2019 NWSL regular season will open the weekend of April 13-14. (Photo credit: Rob Gray/isiphotos.com)

The 2019 NWSL regular season will begin the weekend of April 13-14 and the postseason will conclude with the 2019 NWSL Championship on October 26, the NWSL announced on Wednesday.

For the the third straight year, teams will play a 24-game schedule, with 12 home games and 12 away games.

Preseason will begin on March 4 and the regular season will begin the weekend of April 13-14. The league will take a break from June 3-14 for the group stage of 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup and return the weekend of June 15-16. The regular season will conclude the weekend of October 12-13. The 2019 NWSL Championship, the seventh in NWSL history, will take place on October 26.

2019 NWSL Schedule Key Dates

January 10 | 2019 NWSL College Draft

March 4 | Preseason begins

April 13-14 | Opening weekend

June 3-14 | Break for 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup

October 12-13 | Regular season ends

October 19-20 | 2019 NWSL Playoffs Semifinals

October 26 | 2019 NWSL Championship

The 2019 NWSL Championship will take place later in the calendar year than any final in the league’s history, falling near the end of October.

“We are excited to extend the season to provide our fans more opportunities to experience the best players in the world,” NWSL managing director Amanda Duffy said in the league’s announcement. “This move will allow the league’s clubs more Saturday night home games during a season in which women’s soccer and NWSL’s players will be on the world’s biggest stage with the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup.”

The first item up on the calendar for the NWSL in 2019 is the NWSL College Draft, which will take place on January 10 in Chicago. More info on the College Draft can be found here.